A/N: Thanks for the reviews I got on the last chapter. I'm glad y'all like this one. Here's the next chapter you guys asked for.
Manipulation
Chapter Five
"Kagome, he isn't around here at all," Inuyasha frowned unhappily.
Kagome reddened. "Three days! How come we haven't run into anything...or anyone, for that matter? What's going on?"
"Hell if I know," Inuyasha shrugged. "Hey...why don't we set up camp for tonight? We can start looking again tomorrow morning. If you stay up all night looking, you'll tire yourself out, and you won't be able to fight when the time comes..."
Reluctantly, Kagome sat down. "Fine, but I want an early wake up call."
"I can do that," Inuyasha nodded his agreement.
------------------
"I thought I'd find you here." Kagura whispered. Sesshoumaru was staring at his deserted castle with great interest.
"What the hell do you want?" he snapped at her.
Kagura jumped, but answered his less-than-friendly question anyway. "You're worried about the girl? She's been wandering your lands with the priestess Kikyou since after Naraku came to your castle. She is well."
He turned to her. He may not have said 'Thank you,' but she could see it by looking into his eyes. "What about Jaken?"
"Dead. Killed in the escape attempt. I thought you knew?" she whispered in concern.
His shook his head. "I don't know anything anymore." He frowned. "I can't even remember what I did. Do you know...I didn't hurt her, did I?" he asked, a note of worry in his voice.
Kagura took a step back. She had never seen him like this before. She shook her head. "I do not know. I'm sorry..."
A growl escaped from deep inside Sesshoumaru's throat. "Damn it!" he screamed, balling his fists up tightly at his sides.
"Sesshoumaru?" Kagura smiled.
He turned. "What?"
"I know you want your freedom. I can see it in your eyes. You want to be back here, with that little girl running at your heels..." she laughed lightly. "He won't let you. You can't come back here...don't you see? He has you under his thumb now...like a little insect..." Her eyes grew dark. "There is only one way to obtain our freedom..." She waited, and Sesshoumaru nodded. "We have to hope that your brother is able to defeat Naraku..."
Sesshoumaru's face brightened somewhat. "Kagura, my brother is truly stronger than he looks. He is indeed a formidable opponent. I think, with the help of that miko girl and his other little 'friends', he may be able to do it..."
Kagura frowned deeply. "There is a problem, Sesshoumaru. There is something Naraku is after other than those damn shards. He wants your brother's human girl, Kagome. He has her family here, in our times, under his control...and I have been the one commanded to retrieve her..."
"What the hell does Naraku want with the human girl?" Sesshoumaru wondered aloud.
"He wants to make your brother suffer, Sesshoumaru. He's going to torture that miko girl...and then once he's killed her, he's going to do the same to your brother..."
Sesshoumaru frowned. "Well, if Inuyasha had a weakness, she'd certainly be it," he sighed in defeat. "We have to help them. We can't let that happen. Naraku must be defeated..." Sesshoumaru grabbed Kagura by her shoulders. "There has to be something we can do without Naraku knowing about it before hand..."
"There isn't much," Kagura answered honestly. "But there is one thing we can do..."
"What's that?"
"We have to lose." Kagura whispered.
"Lose?" Sesshoumaru repeated in a confused tone of voice.
Kagura nodded. "Naraku is going to do anything and everything he possibly can to prolong his having to fight Inuyasha himself. He will undoubtedly make us fight. When that time comes, we have to lose..."
"It's funny. I've been plotting to kill my brother for so long now. I finally get the chance, and I'm going to lose on purpose. Well, let me ask you this, Kagura. That all sounds like a brilliant plan, but how do we know Naraku didn't hear us?" Sesshoumaru smirked.
"We don't know," she frowned.
Sesshoumaru smiled, something Kagura had never before actually seen the youkai do. She returned the smile, and slowly walked away.
Naraku laughed. "They think they can make plans against me that easily?" he smirked. "We'll see about that. I can make them suffer just as badly as that half breed if they desire their freedom that badly..."
Inuyasha stopped. "Damn it! They were just here! All three of them! I can smell them!" he growled. "Which way did they go?" he wondered, scanning the surrounding area. He frowned and rubbed his chin. "That way!" he pointed.
"Are you sure?" asked Kagome.
"Has my nose ever lied?" he smiled at her. "Don't answer that question, all right?"
She laughed.
------------------
Sesshoumaru let out a shallow breath. "Humans? Kagome's family?" he followed the scent far into Naraku's castle until he finally came upon the room the smell was coming from. The doors were locked tight. "Damn..." He cracked his knuckles, studying the claws on his hand, and raised his arm to swipe them at the door, but someone held him back.
"Don't even think about it, Sesshoumaru," Naraku hissed in his ear. "I plan to put those three to good use very soon," he revealed.
Sesshoumaru jerked his hand away. "Why? They're nothing but worthless humans anyway. The old man probably can't even lift a sword. What use do they have to you?" he demanded.
"Bait, my dear Sesshoumaru." Naraku laughed. "Do you have a problem with that?"
Sesshoumaru glared at him. "No..." he said after several seconds.
"Good. Then I suggest that you get away from this room." He ordered, and Sesshoumaru bowed and complied.
Kagome frowned. She could see the castle looming in the distance. Yet Inuyasha wanted to stop for the night again. Granted it was getting dark, they were so close!
"Why, Inuyasha? We can see it! We're almost there!" she protested.
Inuyasha's eyebrow rose. "Do you really want to walk through that forest towards that castle at this time of night? That place is demon central. Not to mention that my brother and Kagura are over there..."
"So is my family!" Kagome snapped.
"Kagome..." Sango whispered. "Calm down. My brother is there as well. I understand how you feel. Really, I do, but we have to be careful. It would certainly mean death for us to continue the journey tonight..."
"No matter. You'll die soon enough anyway," Kagome gasped. She had just heard Naraku's voice echoing through her head. She glanced around the campsite. "Did you guys...did you guys hear that voice?" she asked timidly.
Shippo blinked. "What voice?" he asked.
Inuyasha stared at her.
She frowned. "Never mind. It was just in my head. It's all right," she assured him.
"I'm not buying that at all," smirked Inuyasha. "What was it?"
"Naraku."
Inuyasha gasped. "Great! First he tries to get you to kill me, now he's talking to you from inside your head! What did he say?" he demanded.
"Don't worry about it. I don't want to talk about it. The sooner we get to sleep, the sooner we wake up and get to that damned castle..." she sighed. She leaned against the trunk of the tree behind her. Inuyasha was sitting on a branch about ten feet above her head. "Night, everyone," she whispered, and drifted off to sleep.
"Night!" yawned Miroku, inching closer to Sango. There was a loud slapping noise, and he quickly retreated.
Kagome did not find the peace she was looking for in her dreams. Again, her sleep was haunted with terrifying nightmares.
"Kagura? Where is my family? What have you done to them?" she demanded.
Kagura scoffed. "I have done nothing to them. It is yourself that you need to worry about right now," she smirked. "Naraku requests your presence at his castle."
"I'll be there! Inuyasha and I are going to beat him! He's going to pay for all the pain he's caused everyone!" She vowed, her eyes unblinking.
Kagura's eyes seemed to soften a bit, but her tone of voice did not. "I'm sorry, Kagome, but Naraku doesn't want Inuyasha to come yet. He wants you. That's why he's sent me..." Kagura laughed a hollow empty laugh, and suddenly, in front of Kagome's eyes, she turned into Naraku.
"No!" Kagome screamed, nearly falling backwards. Behind Naraku stood her little brother, her mother, and her grandfather. "Let them go!" she demanded of him.
"But Kagome, that wouldn't be any fun..." Naraku smiled at her.
Kagome paled. "Fun? What are you going to do?" She couldn't help but stutter. Naraku's smile was starting to give her the creeps.
"Oh, I don't actually plan on hurting your family...yet. You see, I have other plans. I need Inuyasha to come here..."
Kagome felt as if she'd been slapped across the face. 'He's using me to get to Inuyasha!' she realized. She stared at Naraku. "He won't fall into your stupid trap." She nodded with confidence, although she was sure he was probably already on his way. "He won't." she repeated.
"You don't sound so sure..." he whispered to her.
She reached behind her back. She poked her finger on the tip of one of her arrows, and ignoring the blood, grabbed it and swung her bow around. Naraku rushed forward, and Kagome fell as the sharp end of his sword went through her stomach.
"Too slow," he shook his head. "Next time you try to kill me, make sure you're quicker about it..."
Kagome felt the bow sliding from her hand, and heard the loud clapping noise as it hit the stone floor beneath her. Naraku's sword was still raised, and Kagome was on her knees. She slowly slid down to the floor, and Naraku re-sheathed his sword, a look of pure satisfaction on his face.
He laughed. It was the same cold, hollow laugh Kagome had heard earlier. "Don't die too quickly, my pretty Kagome. Inuyasha isn't here yet..." And with that, he left her where she lay.
Kagome screamed as she bolted awake. Inuyasha was still sleeping above her head. Miroku was sleeping on the ground under a nearby tree, and Shippo was curled up on top of Sango's head. She sighed with relief. It was nothing but a nightmare...
"Aw, were you scared?" Kagome gasped as her eyes shot around for the person she'd heard speaking to her. Kagura was really close by.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled. He jolted awake, nearly falling from his place in the tree.
Kagome jerked around. Kagura was behind her. She almost got out a scream before Kagura grabbed her. Inuyasha jumped from the tree and tried to catch Kagura with his claws, but he missed.
"Don't kill me, Inuyasha. Not yet, anyways. After all, I'm only following Naraku's orders. He wants Kagome, he gets Kagome." She smirked. "I trust this means we'll be seeing you at the castle...if you can get there..." she laughed, and before his eyes, Kagura and Kagome disappeared.
"Damn! Kagome!" Inuyasha screamed, and Miroku and Sango jumped up.
"What happened to Kagome?" demanded Miroku.
Inuyasha glared at him. "What the hell do you think happened? You slept through it all!" he yelled. "She's been taken by Kagura to Naraku's castle..."
"She wants you to follow them, doesn't she, Inuyasha?" whispered Sango.
He frowned. "No, I was just going to sit here and let Naraku murder Kagome and her family!" he growled sarcastically.
"It's probably a trap, Inuyasha. You'll be walking right into another one of Naraku's traps..." Sango frowned.
"But you can't let Kagome die, Inuyasha!" Shippo's bottom lip began to quiver, and shortly afterwards he began to sob loudly.
Sango stroked his head absentmindedly. "Inuyasha, you at least need to calm down before you go off to Naraku's castle. I can guarantee you this is a trap. You need to go in there with a level head if you plan on going..."
"Damn it, Sango! Everything is a trap!" Inuyasha snapped at her. He glared at Shippo. "I do not plan on letting Kagome die!"
Miroku nodded. "None of us plan on letting Kagome die, Inuyasha. We want to go in there with you. You can't do everything on your own, you know..."
"Fine!" he yelled. "If you're coming, you'd better hurry up!"
-------------------------
Kagome opened her eyes. Her family was in the room. As far as she could tell, they all looked perfectly normal. She felt the tears well up in her eyes. "Mom! Grandpa! Souta!" she smiled.
"Kagome!" her mother smiled. "Are you all right? Oh, we were so worried about you! We've been here for a week now! Is everyone else okay?" her mother wrapped her in a hug.
Kagome sighed. "I don't know how everyone else is. Kagura brought me here, mom. I don't think this will end very good..." she whispered under her breath.
"What do you mean?" asked Souta.
Kagome smiled at him. She couldn't tell him what she meant. He didn't need to know. All she knew was that she had to protect him. She brought her mother and grandfather to the side. "Is there a way out of this room?"
"That's funny. The door won't budge," said her grandfather sarcastically.
"We've tried..." her mother explained. "The little girl has been crying for two days. I think she was saying something about that Sesshoumaru guy that brought us here...but she was brought in by that black haired man..."
"What little girl?" demanded Kagome, and her mother pointed behind her. Kagome gasped when she recognized Rin. "Rin! Are you all right?"
Rin shook her head. "Master Sesshoumaru doesn't like me anymore!" she sobbed, and Kagome wrapped her in a protective hug. "Master Sesshoumaru let Naraku bring me here!"
"It's okay, Rin...everything will be fine. Sesshoumaru cares. He does...he just can't help you right now...you're going to be all right..." But Kagome stopped with that, for at that moment, the doors of the room swung open, and there stood Naraku himself.
He smiled at Kagome, and walked over to where she was sitting holding Rin. "What did you bring her here for?" demanded Kagome. "She's a little girl, and you already have Sesshoumaru!"
"Just in case..." he smirked. He jerked Kagome up by her hair, and she cried out and released Rin.
"Kagome!" her mother screamed.
"Come on, Kagome. You don't want to miss Inuyasha's arrival..." he laughed, and dragged her from the room. Her bow was still slung around her shoulder.
--------------------
"Barriers? You're joking, right? You mean we can't get in?" Inuyasha worried.
"I've tried. You could try if you like, but I was not permitted entry..." Miroku explained, and Inuyasha nodded.
Sango shook her head. "I don't like this at all..." she frowned. "Something is wrong..."
Inuyasha swung at the barrier, and surprisingly enough, his sword broke through easily. He shrugged and walked through it. Sango, Miroku, and Shippo made to follow him, but were stopped.
Sango gasped. "Oh, Inuyasha...now I'm really not liking this..." she whispered. "Why won't it let us through?"
"That should be clear enough," smirked Miroku. "This is Naraku's castle. He doesn't want us here..."
"Thank you, Captain Obvious..." Sango growled. She turned to Inuyasha. "Please, Inuyasha...just...be careful, all right?"
Inuyasha nodded, and sped off. "Kagome!" he screamed.
----------------------------
"I know what you want to do," Kagome whispered. "It won't work. Even if you kill me, Inuyasha will not let you win..."
He laughed. "It's funny...you speak of your life as if it means nothing to you. Are you so willing to accept your death?" He took a step forward, and she took a step back.
"Who says I was planning on dieing today?" she challenged. If I hold him off until Inuyasha gets here, everything should be all right....
"You won't be able to hold me off even that long, you stupid girl." Naraku smiled. She gasped. Had he...had he heard her thoughts? "You think you can decide the outcome? No. It is I who pull the strings here, remember? And Inuyasha has forgotten about one important little detail..."
"The poison..." Kagome whispered, reaching behind her back for an arrow. She jumped back as Naraku took yet another step forward, and was relieved to see that things were not happening as they had in her dream. She aimed. "You can't pull the strings if you're dead..." But she gasped. Something had pierced her shoulder from behind. Kagura stood in front of her now.
"You can't kill me of you're dead," smirked Naraku.
A/N: Don't you wish you knew if she was really dead? I know...(evil laughs)...but you are going to have to wait at least two days to find out, 'cause I have an overnight babysitting job! Ha ha ha! Anyway, I'll try to update as soon as I get home, okay? And in the meantime, you can press the little button...
Down there....
See it?
That's the one...